If Smoove wants to win this is the perfect spot for him. No other contender can offer what the Rockets do without gutting their team. With a 2nd year in McHale's system Josh should thrive. We know what he can do and he knows his role better.
Not much of a choice between us and the Clippers. We can offer more money, on a team he is already comfortable with, and he has the opportunity for a lot bigger role. Plus, we beat the Clippers in the playoffs.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Josh Smith and the Clippers are "still having conversations," per source. But Smith is also "talking with several teams."</p>— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) <a href="https://twitter.com/BA_Turner/status/620703433343905792">July 13, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
"According to the Houston Chronicle, the team has offered Smith a contract, but he is reportedly considering all of his options." It is likely that the contract is 2.5M per year, he does not like it very much. But he would make a mistake to go LAC with the similar contract. We also speculated he should not go to LAC after Jordan returned to the team. Make your mind, Josh.
But do we have to give him the MLE in order to top the Clippers' offer? What's the max LA can give Smith? It would really p-ss me off if we lost Smith to the Clippers, especially if it comes down to Morey and Les nickle and diming the guy. We don't beat LA without Smith last season and stealing him away would give them the edge over the Rockets.
Josh Smith played tremendous and was the catalyst for the Rockets knocking out the Clippers in the Western Conference semis. He handles, passes, rebounds, blocks shots and shoots with range. Clippers had full control of that series up 3-1 with Terrence Jones starting at PF. Rockets were dead. Then McHale inserted Josh Smith as the team's starting PF in Game 5 and the Rockets blew the Clippers off the court winning 3 straight to take the series.
As it stands right now, the Clippers already have the edge over the Rockets with their upgrades and Jordan returning. Losing Smith would be a very disappointing turn of events.
And don't forget his play vs the Mavericks. The team(Smith included) was struggling for 2 1/2 quarters in Game 2 before he took over with Dwight. He also played well in Game 4 when no one else(aside from Brewer) even bothered to show up. He did stink for most of that Warriors series, but then again, so did a lot of Rockets. Even Harden had 2 horrendous games out of the 5.
No we don't have. They can offer him I think only a vet min. They used the mini mle on Pierce. Besides taxes. If he goes there it means that it wasn't about money it was about picking the team he wanted. If he goes instead to Dallas or Sacramento then , the money played a role. But don't forget We still have the mle in our hands and we simply refuse to give it to him. So maybe he doesn't see this very well.
Well if that's the case, then I'll really be p-ssed if he goes to the Clippers. I don't really think LA has surpassed the Rockets in the talent department. They essentially have the same team but with Pierce and Stephenson replacing Barnes and Hawes. And Pierce will be 38 on opening night. Assuming Morey does something to address the PG position, the Rockets have the better team. They have the same roster that defeated the Clippers, plus Bev and D-Mo healthy again, Dekker and Harrell drafted, and Thornton signed. And playing time isn't an issue. It's a virtual certainty that if Smith resigns, T-Jones will be shipped out in some sort of deal. So he's either backing up D-Mo here or Griffin in LA.
He'd get considerably less time playing behind Griffin than he would behind D-Mo. Hell, it's possible he would be the starter here since he finished the playoffs as our starting PF. What's the max that the Clippers can offer? They used the mini-MLE to sign Pierce, so I think all they can offer is the league minimum. So less money and less minutes is what the Clippers can offer. How do they have the edge?
No idea why he'd choose the Clippers if there's less money and at most the same amount of playing time. Plus he loves playing for McHale. Doc Rivers is a terrific coach, but his style ain't the same as McHale's.
The last paragraph is very important. For all his ups and downs, he has been a great catalyst for us. Morey didn't overpay Parsons, but Josh is worth the MLE. I am sure he feels insulted by Les and Morey. Morey is very rigid in his ways. He sets a price in his mind and never deviates from it, unless he is forced to. KJ is talented, but he is not worth the MLE. He won't get many minutes in Houston anyway, and he won't be considered as an important asset in a trade IMO. Jones is struggling, D-Mo is rehabbing. Harrell has a long way to go and hasn't even signed as yet. And on top of all this, we have no additional playmaker who could help Harden out. Josh's presence has become critical for us.
